Share

Three-way lead at Fancourt

George - He would have settled for anything under par on Thursday in the opening round of the R4.5-million Dimension Data Pro-Am, but Justin Harding was thrilled with his opening six-under-par 66 on the Montagu course at Fancourt.

That gave him a share of the three-way lead with Danie van Tonder and George Coetzee, two strokes ahead of their nearest challengers, a group of seven players on four-under-par – and only two of those scores came from courses other than Outeniqua. Wallie Coetsee carded his on the par-73 The Links at Fancourt, and Tjaart van der Walt signed for 68 on Montagu.

The players play a round on each of the three Fancourt courses ahead of a cut on Saturday to the top 65 players and ties, and the final round will be played on Montagu.

“I’m super-pleased,” said Harding after his Montagu effort.

“I managed to roll it pretty well on the greens and keep the ball in play. Montagu can be just as tough as The Links. You’ve got to hit a lot of good shots. I hit it long off the tee which was nice. I put it in play so I could attack a few flags.”

However, putting was probably the most important component of his success.

“I read the greens well and I had good speed, so I managed to keep the momentum going in my round. I had only 25 putts, so that helped,” he said.

It was a pleasing start to the 2015 Sunshine Tour season for the man who has won three times on the tour – and he had his best season on the tour in 2014, although he didn’t win. Coming 20th on the Order of Merit and winning over R1.2-million made that palatable.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” he said. “We’ve had six weeks off and I didn’t quite know where my game was at. But I’m obviously happy with it and I hope it continues.”

Coetzee was pleased with the way he performed after spending some time on his swing.

“I’ve been working on a few things, and they’re starting to make sense and come together,” he said.

“I’m starting to play much better. It’s a couple of little technical things that make my swing a little simpler, and I want to be able to go out there and not think about too many things.”

He started badly, bogeying the first, but he pulled it together in style with seven birdies, including four in a row around the turn.

Van Tonder was also pleased with his round, which also included just a single bogey.

“It’s the first time I’ve gone low on Outeniqua,” he said.

“I think my best before today was maybe two-under, and I’m pleased that I’ve got 2015 off to such a good start.”

The group on four-under included two former champions in Hennie Otto and Oliver Bekker, while defending champion Tano Goya of Argentina opened his title defence with a three-under-par 69 on Outeniqua.

Scores (NOTE – The Links par is 73; Outeniqua and Montagu par is 72):
-6 - Danie van Tonder (RSA) 66, George Coetzee (RSA) 66, Justin Harding (RSA) 66
-4 - Jaco Ahlers (RSA) 68, Hennie Otto (RSA) 68, Oliver Bekker (RSA) 68, Dawie Van der Walt (RSA) 68, Wallie Coetsee (RSA) 69, Tjaart van der Walt (RSA) 68, Ruan de Smidt (RSA) 68
-3 - Ulrich van den Berg (RSA) 69, Thomas Aiken (RSA) 69, Darren Fichardt (RSA) 69, Estanislao Goya (ARG) 69, Lyle Rowe (RSA) 70, Madalitso Muthiya (ZAM) 69
-2 - Ockie Strydom (RSA) 70, Jaco Van Zyl (RSA) 70, Charl Coetzee (RSA) 70, Garth Mulroy (RSA) 70, Merrick Bremner (RSA) 70, Haydn Porteous (RSA) 70, Keith Horne (RSA) 71, Daan Huizing (NED) 70, Doug McGuigan (RSA) 70, Mark Williams (ZIM) 70,Kevin Stone (RSA) 71, CJ du Plessis (RSA) 70, Ross McGowan (ENG) 70, Callie Swart (RSA) 70
-1 - Branden Grace (RSA) 71, Jared Harvey (RSA) 71, Andrew Georgiou (RSA) 71, Jordan Smith (ENG) 71, Toby Tree (ENG) 71, Bradford Vaughan (RSA) 71, Martin Rominger (SUI) 72, Kevin Rundle (RSA) 71, Scott Henry (SCO) 71, Darryn Lloyd (RSA) 71,Le Roux Ferreira (RSA) 71, Steven Ferreira (RSA) 71, Attie Schwartzel (RSA) 71, JC Ritchie (RSA) 71
Par - Neil Schietekat (RSA) 73, Darren Clarke (NIR) 72, Wayne De Haas (RSA) 73, Jacques Blaauw (RSA) 72, Andrew Marshall (ENG) 73, Jake Redman (RSA) 72, Justin Walters (RSA) 72, Pablo Martin Benavides (ESP) 72, Tyrone Mordt (RSA) 72, Jean-Baptiste Gonnet (FRA) 72, Steve Surry (ENG) 73, Andrew McLardy (RSA) 72, Pieter Moolman (RSA) 73, Zander Lombard (RSA) 72, Justin Turner (RSA) 72, Ben Mannix (ENG) 72, Divan van den Heever (RSA) 72
+1 - Heinrich Bruiners (RSA) 74, PH McIntyre (RSA) 74, Vaughn Groenewald (RSA) 74, Jean Hugo (RSA) 74, Sebastien Gros (FRA) 74, Lindani Ndwandwe (RSA) 74, Pierre Relecom (BEL) 74, Rhys West (RSA) 73, Keenan Davidse (RSA) 73, Grant Muller (RSA) 74, Bradley Neil (AMA) (SCO) 73, Grant Doverspike (USA) 73, Derik Ferreira (RSA) 73, Chris Swanepoel (RSA) 74, Daniel Greene (RSA) 74, Tyrone Ryan (RSA) 74, Callum Mowat (RSA) 73, Stuart Smith (BOT) 73
+2 - Dean Burmester (RSA) 75, James Kamte (RSA) 74, Peter Karmis (RSA) 74, Trevor Fisher Jnr (RSA) 74, Maritz Wessels (RSA) 74, Derick Petersen (RSA) 75, Daniel Gaunt (ENG) 75, Russel Franz (RSA) 75, Grant Veenstra (RSA) 74, Louis Calitz (RSA) 74, Calvin Caldeira (RSA) 74, Anthony Michael (RSA) 75, Matthew Carvell (RSA) 74, James Heath (ENG) 74, Tyrone Ferreira (RSA) 74, Tyron Roelofsz (RSA) 74
+3 - Divan Gerber (RSA) 75, Shaun Norris (RSA) 75, JJ Senekal (RSA) 75, Jeff Inglis (ENG) 76, Juan Langeveld (RSA) 75, Neil Cheetham (ENG) 75, Phillip Price (WAL) 75, Brandon Stone (RSA) 75, Michael Hollick (RSA) 75, Makhetha Mazibuko (RSA) 76, Bryce Bibby (RSA) 75, Jaco Prinsloo (RSA) 75, Paul Doherty (SCO) 75, Francesco Laporta (ITA) 75, Shaun Smith (RSA) 75, Jacques Kruyswijk (RSA) 75, Roberto Lupini (RSA) 75
+4 - Warren Abery (RSA) 77, Dylan Frittelli (RSA) 76, Duncan Stewart (SCO) 77, Ryan Cairns (ZIM) 76, Phillip Archer (ENG) 77, Henry Featherstone (ENG) 76, Coert Groenewald (RSA) 77, Brett Liddle (RSA) 76, Hennie du Plessis (RSA) 76, Rhys Enoch (WAL) 76
+5 - Ryan Evans (ENG) 77, Thanda Mavundla (RSA) 78, Christiaan Basson (RSA) 78, Colin Nel (RSA) 77, Michiel Bothma (RSA) 77, Drikus van der Walt (RSA) 77, Andre Bossert (SUI) 77, Allan Versfeld (RSA) 77, Francois Coetzee (RSA) 77
+6 - Andrew Odoh (NGA) 78, Desvonde Botes (RSA) 79, Titch Moore (RSA) 78, Erik van Rooyen (RSA) 79, Ryan Tipping (RSA) 78, Etienne Bond (RSA) 79, Thriston Lawrence (RSA) 79, Mark Murless (RSA) 79, Alex Haindl (RSA) 79, Morne Buys (RSA) 79, Alex Gaugert (USA) 79, Jack Harrison (ENG) 78
+7 - Jack Doherty (SCO) 80, Sipho Bujela (RSA) 79, Garrick Porteous (ENG) 80, Oskar Henningsson (SWE) 80, Trevor Mahoney (RSA) 80, Adrian Ford (RSA) 79, Nic Henning (RSA) 80, Eddie Taylor (RSA) 80, Irvin Mazibuko (RSA) 79
+8 - Rourke van der Spuy (RSA) 81, Toto Thimba (Jnr) 81, Alan Michell (RSA) 81, Drikus Bruyns (RSA) 80, Sean Jacklin (SCO) 80, Dwayne Basson (RSA) 80, Louis de Jager (RSA) 80
+9 - Wynand Dingle (RSA) 82, Thabo Maseko (RSA) 81, Lean Boezaart (RSA) 82
+10 - Patrick Newcomb (USA) 82, Theunis Spangenberg (RSA) 82, Dayne Moore (ZAM) 83, Andrew Curlewis (RSA) 82
+11 - Jacquin Hess (RSA) 84, Burger Heckroodt (RSA) 84

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
25% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1471 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2249 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE